Daughter of the Wise
by Petite Moineau
Summary: In where Ari, daughter of the wiseman Ansem, meets a boy with silver hair. Riku/OC-if you couldn't tell already. Rated T for violence and fluff. You have been warned.
1. Chapter 1: Introduction

When Ari, the Wiseman's daughter, found out that her father had disappeared, she went on a search for him. Determined to find him no matter the cost to herself, Ari began an investigation into his disappearance, gathering all the information that she could. Her research soon lead her to a group called Organization XII and a world called The World that Never Was. Ari realized that if she had any chance of finding her father, she must travel to this world. But without a gummi ship she was forced to resort to magic. Being one who knew little of magic, she studied hard to find a way to get to the world. Finally she found a spell of light that would take her there. Ari tried it and succeed, but the exertion proved to be too strenuous on her. Once arriving safely int the world, Ari blacked out.  
When Ari awoke, she couldn't remember anything. She found that she couldn't even remember her name. Disoriented and scared she began to wander the streets, in search of an answer or somebody to help her.  
A member of the very organization she had come to question, the one called Roxas, was walking through the streets when he saw Ari roaming about. He assumed that she was a nobody and walked calmly over to her, asking for her name. Ari said nothing, scared, wet, cold, and confused. Roxas became irritated at her non-cooperation, he inquired again.  
"What's your name?" Again Ari said nothing and Roxas mistook her reluctance as a personal offense. Angry, he grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall of a building, her legs dangling off the ground.

"Roxas," She said, the name popping into her mind like it was her own. _Do I know him,_ she thought, though she was sure she didn't. She stared at him wide-eyed.  
"How do you know me? Who are you?" When she didn't answer again he tightened his grip and Ari began to choke.  
"Put her down," An unidentified voice called out. Roxas and Ari both turned their heads to see a boy with silver hair in a black, organization cloak and a blindfold.  
"Not until she tells me who she is." Roxas replied.  
"How can she speak when she can't breathe? Can't you see she's frightened?." The new-comer retorted.  
"Nobodies can't be frightened. They all put on this show at first, try to be clever." Roxas turned his gaze back to Ari.  
"She's not a nobody, put her down." The one with the blindfolded insisted.  
"Who are you?" Roxas asked suddenly aware that this boy isn't from the organization.  
"A servant of the dark." The silver-haired boy answers cryptically. Roxas released Ari and she crumpled to the ground. Roxas walked past the boy and contemplated if he is friend or foe. As Ari coughed and breathed grateful breaths, her memories flowed slowly back to her. The silver-haired boy turned his gaze to Ari and moves help her to her feet. He asked if she was alright and still out of breath, Ari replied with a quick nod. The stranger patted her shoulder once and then left her side. Walking over to Roxas, the two draw their weapons and begin to fight. An overwhelming urge to assist the silver-hair boy came over Ari but she resisted it, knowing that this wasn't her fight.  
Suddenly heartless appeared all around Ari and she pulled out her two swords which were strapped to her back. She grinned, itching for combat. With all her memories intact, Ari fought with the agility and grace of one who's trained for years.  
After beating back seemingly endless waves, Ari defeated the last heartless and noticed that it was quiet. She looked around and saw the silver-haired boy, lying a only a few yards away. The rush of battle still coursing through her veins, Ari rushed to his side. She noticed that he was injured and bleeding from several minor wound. He was conscious, and she gave a sigh of relief. Perhaps now she could pay him back.  
"Who are you?" He groaned, shaking her from her thoughts.  
"I'm Ari." She said tearing off a piece of her shirt to wrap around a cut on his arm. He flinched slightly at her touch, as if he was afraid she would harm him. "It's alright, I'm trying to help. I want to thank you for saving me back there." She continued to wrap his arm, after he relaxed slightly.  
"It was no problem." He said humbly. She tightened the makeshift bandage and he cried out. Ari wondered what his name was. She had always had the gift of telling what a person's name was by their features. That was how she had been able to identify Roxas when she couldn't even remember her own name. But since he was blindfolded, she could not tell. Tentatively, she started to take the blindfold off but he stopped her with one hand on hers.  
"Please," He said with sadness in his voice. She respectively drew her hands back into her lap. Impulsively, and without really knowing why she did it, Ari leaned down and kissed him.  
"I'm sorry," She said abruptly breaking the kiss and flushing.  
"It's . . . alright."

A faint smile plaid upon Ari's lips but she quickly hid it. Somehow she sensed that despite the blindfold, this stranger could see.  
"We should get somewhere indoors. Can you walk?" She inquired, briskly changing the subject and breaking the awkward silence.  
"Yeah."  
So Ari helped him into an old building, where she cleaned the rest of his wounds. The boy assumed a brooding silence while she did, and said nothing. Ari wanted to know more about him but was unwilling to press him for further information. She felt guilty because she thought that she was the reason he and that other boy started a fight. To her surprise, the silver-haired stranger broke the silence.  
"So what brings you, Ari, to this desolate world?" He asked. Ari nearly started from the suddenness of his question.  
"I'm looking for my father, who disappeared from my world a couple years ago. Perhaps you know of him, his name is Ansem, Ansem the Wise." The boy propped himself onto his elbows and furrowed his brow. "What? So you do know him?" She asked in earnest. Perhaps this boy finally put an end to her search.  
"Ari your father is dead. He - or rather his heartless was destroyed by a friend of mine. He was going to hand the world over to darkness. I am . . . sorry." Ari shook her head in disbelief.  
"No . . . no, no! He was a good man! He only wanted to protect his people. He'd never-" she couldn't finish; she buried her face in her hands and cried. Ari was only partly aware of arms encircling her tentatively.  
"I'm sorry," He whispered in her ear and then left her alone. Ari cried herself to sleep.

Ari was asleep when she felt something soft brush against her cheek. Lips? She sleepily opened her eyes and saw a cloaked figure heading out the door. Was he taller?  
"Wait!" He stopped and turned around to look at her, his hood clouding his face. "Where are you going?"  
"I have to go . . . complete a mission." He replied tightly, trying to shield his emotions.  
"It's just I don't know your name. I haven't even seen your eyes and eyes play a big role in telling someone's name." Perhaps she could delay him  
"You tell what someone's name is just by looking at them? How?" She had captured his curiosity, if only for a moment. Ari would take what she could get.  
"Let's just say I'm good with names." She smirked.  
"I have to go; I've tarried here to long." He began to leave again.  
"If I knew your name I could find you again and tell you more about names." Ari took a shot in the dark.  
"Riku." And then he was gone, disappeared in a portal of darkness.  
"Then until we meet again, Riku." She grinned.


	2. Chapter 2: A Figure in the Sky

**Author's Note: Alright this really the second draft of this story because the first one was crappy. After I uploaded a chapter, I always thought of something I could have added to make it better. So this time I did. I wonder if all writers are this nit-picky? Anyway tell me what you think!**

It was a dark night for all the worlds, but for Destiny Islands it was also stormy. Thunder and lightning crashed and lit up the sky. The winds blew so violently that the trees rocked. Waves surged and crashed on the beach. And while Sora, Roxas, and Namine were away visiting King Mickey, Riku and Kairi waited the storm out together in the hut on the beach.

Somewhere over the ocean a light flashed, one that did not belong to lightning. A figure appeared and fell into the sea. They were injured, and with the waves as violent as they were, the figure almost drowned. They fought the waves, determined to reach the shore and somehow they made it to solid ground. The stranger got up, clutching the injured shoulder, and stumbled to the beach cabin.

Riku and Kairi were playing cards when they heard thumping on the door. The two looked at each other, frowning in confusion.

"I'll get it," Riku said getting up, "It's probably Tidas, Wakka, and Selphie wanting to join us." He opened the door and a girl collapsed into his quick arms. In her left shoulder was an arrow and dripping from wound was blood and an inky-black liquid. She was clad in a thin, white, stained nightgown that was knee-length and decorated only by a long, bright blue, embroidered trim.

"Oh my . . .!" Kairi exclaimed, not daring to finish her curse. The face, though pale and wracked with pain, was familiar to Riku. She opened her eyes, if only for a moment, to see who had caught her.

"Riku," she whispered and closed her eyes again. Riku picked the girl up and carried her in while Kairi shut the door.

"Do you know her?" Kairi asked perplexed.

"We met . . . once." He replied cryptically. The girl in his arms moaned at the movements.

"Well?" Kairi encouraged.

"Her name is Ari." Riku informed her. "Ari, what happened? How'd you get here?"

"We-we were at-attached . . . by h-heart-heartless. Hoards of them. I w-was shot by an-an arrow. The liquid you see is darkness. I-I . . . I don't know how-how I got h-here," Ari managed to get out.

"Stay still," Riku advised and he pulled Kairi aside to talk to her in private. "I've seen this before . . . the darkness spreads throughout the body like a virus and eventually consumes the heart. Now I can heal the wound but I need light to remove the darkness. I don't have that power, Sora does."

"But Sora's visiting the king he won't be back for three days and there's no way to get a message to him," Kairi stated.

"I know. . ." Riku put a hand to his forehead.

"Well does she have three days?" Kairi asked, horrified.

"Maybe, maybe not." Riku shrugged his helplessness.

"Do what you can." Kairi told Riku and he nodded and walked back to Ari. He knelt over her and wrapped his hand around the arrow.

"Kairi, cover your ears and look away."

"What? Why?" She asked worriedly, but complied.

"I'm sorry Ari, this is going to hurt," Riku whispered. He riped the arrow out and Ari let lose a horrible, bloodcurdling scream. She surprisingly stayed conscious.

"Riku!" Kairi scolded turning around again.

"It had to come out," He threw back. Ari moaned and cried out in pain. She writhed, unable to escape the burning in her shoulder.

"Hurry up and heal it." Kairi commanded.

"Not yet, I want to see how much darkness we can get out. Get me a sponge and a bowl of water?" Kairi nodded, rolling her eyes and left the room. She came back with the required items and Riku began to soak the poison up, careful not to drip on anything. Kairi watched over his shoulder, supervising and asking at two minute intervals if he was done yet. Riku would reply patiently "no". Finally, after twenty minutes, he had gotten all out that was possible. It was already in her blood system. Ari had fallen asleep from exhaustion during the cleaning.

"Do you know how long she has . . . before it takes her heart?" Kairi asks wringing her hands.

"Well it depends on the person," He said rubbing his temples, "and their ability to resist darkness. We will just have to wait."

"How exactly is she and how did you two meet?"

"It's . . . a long story," Riku replied a little embarrassed and reluctant to relay the story to Kairi.

"Well we've got the time," She encouraged. So Riku told her about when he was looking for Roxas in The World That Never Was and he found him threatening Ari. After Roxas defeated him, Ari took care of him and dressed his wounds. She told Riku that she was here looking for her father, Ansem the Wise. It was then that Riku told her that he was dead by Sora's hand (for that's what he believed but later found out that her father was still alive). After Riku recovered he took the form of Xehanort's heartless and he and Ari parted company. Riku left out the part about Ari kissing him for he knew what Kairi would assume and he wasn't sure if he wanted her to know.

"Well now that we've cleared that up I suppose one of us will have to take care of her until Sora shows up and fully heals her. I think the storm's died down, so let's go back to our houses and get Ari some clothes and bedding so she's comfy."

As soon as the two islanders left Ari closed and locked the windows and door. She closed the shades so that it was as dark as night in the little beach hut. She had to make sure that she survived for three days. Ari thought that the best way to delay the poison was to be alone. No one to aggravate her. She was determined to survive. . .

When Riku and Kairi returned with the provisions for Ari, they found that she had barricaded herself in the hut. Needless to say, Kairi was furious. By the time they gave up trying to break in, it was morning.

"We just saved her life! What does she think she'll accomplish by locking herself away like that?" Kairi asked throwing her arms up in the air in frustration. Then her voice took on a calmer, gentler tone, "I'm worried is all, she's going to need help." The two were still outside the hut, Kairi was standing and pacing while Riku sat on a barrel.

"She thinks she has to be alone for this," Riku told Kairi.

"Do _you_ think that?"

"No, but unless she's willing to let us in, there's nothing we can do."

"Well then I'm going to see if she's willing to let me in." Kairi knocked on the door, three sharp raps. "Ari," She said in her sincerest, gentlest voice, "Can I come in?" No answer. "Ari?"

"Leave me," said Ari's muffled emotionless voice.

"But-"

"Please," Ari pleaded, "Just go." Kairi gave a defeated shrug indicating she didn't know what to do. Riku sighed exasperatedly and got up and came to the door knocking on it a little.

"Ari, it's Riku, let me in," his voice was demanding.

"N-no," came the unsure reply.

"Let me in."

"No," She repeated sounding annoyed.

"Let me in, Ari," this time pleading.

Something hit the door and shattered and at the same time Ari screamed at the top her lungs, "NO!" Riku's eyebrows furrowed, shocked and a little confused. His eyes betrayed something that almost looked like hurt. But then he turned and walked away from the little hut, followed by a dumbstruck Kairi.

"She won't last three days like this," He said under his breath.


	3. Chapter 3: Thinking Wears You Out

Ari panted, appalled and perplexed herself by her heated reaction to Riku's demand. What was happening to her? She almost never lost her temper and when she did it never came to screaming or throwing. A tear fell from her eye, sliding down her pale cheek and hitting the hardwood floor with a little _s_plat. _No. Don't cry. You have to be strong. Don't let it control you_. She thought wiping away the watery track the tear made. _Three days shouldn't be _too_ hard. _She thought more cheerfully. _That is, if they don't bother me again_. They were the ones who provoked her weren't they? If they'd have just left her alone like she'd asked – but Ari dismissed that thought. They were only concerned for her and she didn't want to think on the matter any more. Better she didn't think of them at all.

Ari thought then of her father. She learned upon returning to Radiant Garden that Riku was mistaken in telling her that her father was dead. After Sora defeated Xemnas, she found out that her father's machine, to convert Kingdom Hearts into data, exploded and no one knew what happened to him. It was generally accepted that he was dead. Ari knew that dead or alive, she would never see her father again. She missed him terribly. They had been very close. He was her best friend, especially after Ari's mother died. It was hard for both of them, but more so for Ansem. His daughter looked so much like her mother, but Ari was practically his shadow. She was so much like him. As a little girl, Ari would follow him everywhere; even when she wasn't supposed to and that often got Ari into trouble.

Back at Radiant Garden it was currently being discussed whether or not Ari would succeed her father. Ari didn't think she that she _couldn't_ rule, but she would prefer not to. She liked to travel and see the worlds. How could she govern a world she was always away from? This was exactly the issue being debated at Radiant Garden by the committee. Leon and Arieth thought Ari shouldn't be obligated to rule and should be able to do as she wanted. The two thought that elections were the most prudent course of action. Sid and Yuffie thought that elections would prove too much trouble and that it would just be easier for Ari to take the throne. Elections might breed dissent and disagreement. Merlin however, took both sides of the argument and never seemed be able to settle on one. And then there was that new guy. The creepy little man who had weaseled his way into the committee. He was mum as to his opinion. The others seemed to like him, but Ari distrusted him. His name was Souta and he had been admitted to the committee shortly after Sora and company had restored the worlds back to the norm.

Ari was confused as to what to do. She would like not to have the burden of ruling but if she had to, of course she'd take the throne. It was all so very confusing. What was going to happen to the people if her heart was lost to darkness? Ari worried for her home's safety. Had it survived the heartless attach?

These thoughts ran through Ari's mind. Circled and looped, drifted in and out, and raced around in her restless head until they drove her to exhaustion and she slept.


End file.
